New target: Burnley now want to sign teenage striker

HIGHLIGHTS

Burnley are now in the race to sign Colchester United forward Bradley Ihionvien, with a report revealing that a number of Premier League clubs could be set to do battle for his signature…

Who did Burnley sign in the summer?

The Clarets overhauled their squad in the summer, following the promotion from the Championship last season, and the vast majority of the new arrivals are 25 and under, with manager Vincent Kompany willing to put his faith in a youthful team.

However, the approach is yet to yield any positive results for Kompany’s side, who are currently bottom of the Premier League table, having lost their opening three games, although they have faced tough opposition in Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa.

Summer signing Lyle Foster has recently opened up about Burnley’s start to the season during his media duties for national side South Africa, saying:

“It’s a tough league. You can’t make too many mistakes, otherwise you will be punished but I’m enjoying myself and with the young team we have, we can only grow and learn more from this, especially the first three games which were tough and world-class opponents,

“It’s a long season ahead, but I believe in this team. We are three games into the season and we can’t be pressing panic buttons.”

Although it has not been the best of starts to the season, Kompany seemingly remains committed to his approach of signing young players, with Football Insider revealing the Clarets are now in the race for 19-year-old Colchester striker Ihionvien.

However, a whole host of other clubs are keen on signing the youngster, including Crystal Palace, Leicester City, Watford and Norwich City, so there is sure to be stiff competition for his signature.

The “powerful” striker has caught the eye of clubs higher up the football pyramid after impressing for Colchester in the early stages of this season, having made his first-team breakthrough at the back end of the 2021-22 campaign.

As the left-footed forward is out of contract at the end of this season, there is an indication he could be available for a cut-price fee, with Colchester now bracing themselves for interest.

Who is Bradley Ihionvien?

The English youngster came through the youth ranks at Colchester, and he has gone on to establish himself in the first team this season, scoring two goals in 178 minutes of League Two action this season.

The most recent of which came less than five minutes after being brought on as a substitute against Tranmere Rovers, showing manager Ben Garner that he is worthy of a start at home against Mansfield Town this weekend.

It is still very early days in Ihionvien’s career, so it is difficult to tell whether he would be able to make the step-up to Burnley, but they should continue to run the rule over him ahead of the January transfer window.